SLATY-BACKED GULL EURASIAN COLLARED DOVE BARRED OWL EASTERN PHOEBE FISH CROW RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER NASHVILLE WARBLER HOODED WARBLER
Cackling Goose Canada Goose Northern Pintail Harlequin Duck Common Loon Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe Black-crowned Night-Heron Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Merlin Iceland Gull Glaucous Gull Great Horned Owl Snowy Owl Barred Owl Northern Flicker Common Raven Brown Creeper Winter Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Chipping Sparrow It's winter here in the Hamilton Study Area and there are lots of great birds around to look at. The Hamilton Christmas Bird Count is Boxing Day so count day starts tomorrow. Let's start with the top of the list, there's alot to cover. The two SLATY-BACKED GULLS likely continue to visit the Brantford Dump and Mowhawk Lake. The access to the dump has now been closed but these birds are likely around and a good place to try is Mowhawk Lake where the gulls come to bathe and sit. Other gulls seen here this week include Iceland and Glaucous Gulls. On Tuesday, a keen observer saw two large square tailed doves fly into some evergreen trees behind 528 Ferguson Road in Hamilton which he suspected to be EURASIAN COLLARED DOVES. The doves were found and photographed the next morning and have been seen daily including today in the evergreens and deciduous trees surrounding this address. Sometimes the birds are sitting low and are better seen from nearby Wood Street. Please keep in mind that this is a residential neighbourhood and walking around with binoculars at this time of year can be considered sketchy so if you are questioned just let people know what you are looking for and if asked to leave please do so. Try not to overstay your welcome. Parking is best at Eastwood Park which is across Burlington Street right at Ferguson. An EASTERN PHOEBE was seen briefly at the Great Lakes Stormwater Pond off Burloak Drive on Sunday. Sightings of FISH CROW this week come from the Fiesta Mall again in Stoney Creek and from the Dundas Valley on Wednesday. Sedgewick Park continues to entertain with a third ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER being seen with the other two this week. The NASHVILLE and HOODED WARBLER continue to be seen with these ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS often travelling together and with RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS. Other species seen here include Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet. Another ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was seen along the Sheldon Creek trail on the South Peel Count and on the same trail a BARRED OWL made a one day appearance. In the odds and sods this week a Cackling Goose was seen in a field of Canada Geese on 8th Road East yesterday. Another group of 6 was reported over the Urquhart Butterfly Gardens. A Northern Pintail and Pied-billed Grebe were present in the Red Hill Outlet today off Eastport Drive. A couple of days ago and adult Black-crowned Night Heron was present. Another Black-crowned Night Heron was seen at the Desjardins Canal yesterday. This morning a pleasant surprise was two Harlequin ducks sitting on the edge of one of the islands as you walk out the Bayfront Trail from Bayfront Park. Birds seen from LaSalle Marina this week include Common Loon, Horned Grebe and Red-necked Grebe. Three Red-necked Grebes were seen from Pier 4 Park yesterday. An adult Bald Eagle was seen in Cootes Paradise this morning and a juvenile was spotted flying over the high level bridge mid-day. At Bronte-creek Provincial Park east last week, Northern Harrier and Northern Flicker were highlights. On the South Peel count a Chipping Sparrow was seen on the west side of the park. Merlins were seen at Bayfront Park and Gage Park this week. A Great Horned Owl was ratted out by a group of crows at Sedgewick Park in Oakville and another seen at the woodlot off Hillview near Fifty Road. Snowy Owls continue to be seen at Tollgate Pond and one has set up shop down at Pier 4 Park at the west end of the harbour. Lastly a Common Raven was observed flying along the Stoney Creek Lakeshore near Cherry Beach a couple of days ago. This week's duty is to report sightings for the Hamilton Christmas count. Send along your sightings here so I can pass them onto the compiler. All the best this holiday season!! Thanks for a great year of sightings. Cheryl Edgecombe HNC --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
